A question that I shall answer in this blog is that why individual Indians succeed but the country as a whole fails to muster up the same success level. Kiran Desai wins the Booker Prize, Lakshmi Mittal is the world’s third richest man and Sachin Tendulkar is one of the greatest cricketers ever despite the team not having won a World Cup since 1983.

The Indian economy despite surpassing the 8% growth mark can still be gawked at for depicting a huge gap between the lifestyles of the rich and the poor. Despite having one of the worlds most sophisticated and state-of-the-art armed forces, the country fails to bring an end to constant cross-border terrorism and we are gifted with regular infringements across the homeland. Despite having a brilliant talent pool of graduates & post-graduates, we have failed to truly establish a MNC that is on par with the Western franchises.

The answer to this question may not be direct; it has to be searched within. The answer lies deep in our minds and the facade of our existence as Indians. It lies in our thinking. And our thinking can be summarized in a few words – “Help only thyself; help only thy relatives at maximum”. Our failure to broaden our thinking and hence reduce the anomalies associated with it has resulted in the overall conceptual failure of India as a nation.

The point that irritates me the most is how the system of “contacts” works. True players in the game don’t get a deserved chance while having just a mere attachment with a person of power can help you come to par with others, despite clearly having lesser ability. Having contacts can truly be considered as one of the untold secrets of success.

The Supreme Court’s stay order on OBC reservations does go some way in eliminating the scenario and motivates people to think that they will get in if they deserve it. Eventually, it is all a mindset. Choose to change it and success may come to us all, not only to thyself…..